Avalanche

Though Eric Andersen moved from the folk label Vanguard to the heavy muscle of Warner Brothers, he simply lacked the focus at this point in his career to make the connections with his audience either deeper or wider. The music here is fascinating, but it’s so stylistically diverse that it’s hard for anyone to figure out what kind of artist Andersen wished to be. His previous album from the same year—A Country Dream—had suggested, in large part, the mellow singer/songwriter who eventually would make the excellent and focused album Blue River. However, Avalanche shows Andersen working with spirited pop and rock, complete with female backup singers, on “Think About It” and “Louise." “Good to Be with You” and the title track retained touches of country and vaudeville. “(We Were) Foolish Like the Flowers” and “For What Was Gained” sounded more like what fans expected.